Q&A: Former Director of Corporate Development | Current CEO & Founder

Question 1. Can you speak a little more to climbing the ladder in Corp Dev / Is 4 promotions in 8 years typical? When and why did you get promoted?

I do believe there can be some variance across companies in terms of promotions so please take this response with that as context. There is not a set / defined promotion schedule like you would see at an IB / Big 4 / or Consulting track (e.g. 90% of analysts get promoted to associate or fired after 24 months) in smaller corporate groups. The typical analyst/associate should expect 2-3 years before being promoted to Manager, although 1 year is not out of the question, especially if you come into Corp Dev with more than 2 years work experience.

In general, as you get more senior, the promotions are based on availability and need as well as based on performance. Getting promoted from a Manager to marginally higher title (e.g. Sr. Manager) is more likely to be a function of pushing your boss for a new title or a function of moving into a new pay grade vs. a change in roles and responsibilities. My guess would be that in 90% of Corp Dev teams, there is no difference between Manager and Sr. Manager outside of pay grade or a frustrated employee pushing for a title change to show progression.

Beyond Manager, promotions and title changes are limited based on organizational structure. The year I left Corp Dev, we had 1 VP, 2 Directors, and 1 Analyst. It was not going to be possible for either Director to get promoted to VP unless the VP left the group. When I first started our group had 1 SVP, 2 VPs, 3 Managers/analysts. Whether it be the SVP or VP level, there is a point where title promotions are not possible unless someone leaves.

I specifically got promoted because I was in the right place at the right time and I like to believe I worked my ass off. A few years into my career the VP I worked for left the organization, which threw me into leading and managing deal teams earlier in my career. That same year, the company decided to make an organizational change and create VP of Corp Dev/Bus Dev roles at its business segments. The searches were going to be 100% external (HR heavily favored external hires vs. internal promotions), but after failing to find the right candidate for 1 segment, the CEO and CFO of the business segment made the push for my promotion into their segment as a Director.

Question 2 Can you also speak a little bit to the type of people you see do best in Corp Dev? Are bankers a good fit for Corp Dev or do you look for different skills when you hire?

If you are asking about junior roles, typical Corp Dev employees come from PE, IB, Valuation and Consulting. All those careers are acceptable to get into Corp Dev at a junior level, you just need an understanding of business valuation. Consulting is at a slight disadvantage, but it isn't insurmountable. Understanding the M&A process is helpful, but not a must at a junior level. As you get more senior, my opinion is the best Corp Dev professionals have real M&A execution experience prior to moving into Corp Dev or obtained in the first few years in Corp Dev. The best advice I can provide someone is to understand how to manage and execute a transaction (not just value a company or what an LOI is). Senior employees need to know the details of how to complete a transaction (negotiations, working capital, purchase agreements, tax issues, etc.). I've found that more senior consultants moving into Corp Dev typically struggle because they will not fundamentally understand how to execute an M&A deal. They will have to rely heavily on lawyers or other experienced staff and will struggle with bankers and potential targets.

Sorry should have been more clear and the answer is actually both. For context the company had a corporate HQ, business segments and operating companies within the segments.

I started at the corporate HQ until I made Director. I was a Director of a $2+ billion business segment that housed about 9 operating companies. The last year of my career was spent as a Director at the corporate level.

I really struggled with the MBA question and ultimately decided to go part-time for the reason you mentioned. I would not have been able to get the job I had right out of an MBA and the work experience I would have been missing, especially with one active deal in particular, was more valuable than the MBA to be honest. I got the MBA for option value and to gain some more education in strategy and management. I felt like I needed the MBA if I ever wanted to move into another role at another company. Most positions that hit my inbox required an MBA (or "Strongly preferred" but I interpreted that as necessary) and I also felt like I needed a Target MBA name on the resume since I did not go to target undergrad. Part of me felt like I needed to prove something to myself (definitely could have applied myself more in high school) and part of me wanted to avoid missing opportunities that historically only looked at top-tier MBAs. Looking back on it, I should not have obsessed so much about getting an MBA for the name, that was childish of me.

Here is the all in comp. Some of the amounts might be rounded as I don't remember the exact numbers, but they wont be more than a few thousand off. The ranges cover my entire time in each level.

All in Compensation * Analyst: ~$100k * Manager: $120-130k (Note: this was grossly under market) * Director: $180-$245k

It is my intention to eventually replace and exceed my most recent compensation with the new company. I am not taking a salary at the moment.

Absolutely, sorry for the delay here, it's been a long day.

Question 1 Can you touch on the start of your career? What exposure did you get in the Valuations practice and what projects & experience would you advice one to seek if they do such a position as their first job out of undergrad?

I think my exposure in general was fairly standard for any valuation employee. I had pretty decent exposure to senior employees (Directors, Partners, etc.) even in the first year of my career. I was able to eventually attend client meetings a make a few trips for work. This is all very typical of any valuation practice I've heard of. The technical skills I learned were beneficial, but the work was tedious.

The best exposure and experience I would suggest anyone moving into business valuation is to try and get on projects that are outside of Financial Reporting (PPA and Goodwill impairment) and Taxation related valuations. These jobs are few and far between in Big 4 (maybe not elsewhere) but I think this experience will 1. make you more aware of other job opportunities career paths and 2. help build the resume for when you eventually move on in your career (you will simply have more to talk about). I was able to get on several projects (Dispute/litigation and business valuations for businesses looking to sell to PE) that really gave me a broader base to talk about in interviews. This work also helped me realize that I needed to find a way to get involved with M&A deals before they were completed, vs. Purchase Price Accounting work after a deal is completed, which always personally felt more like a math exercise.

I would also suggest that you understand why every project you are working on needs to be completed. I cannot tell you the amount of times I heard a MD or Director say they didn't know the purpose of the work/valuation beyond "tax" etc. This always amazed me and really made the work feel unimportant.

Question 2 For how long did you stay there? What exit opps did the job gave you? Was the vals experience helpful for the MBA admission?

• I worked in a Big 4 valuation practice for almost 3 years.
• Here are the exit opportunities that I was presented with and feel like are realistic exits: Middle Market Investment Banking Corporate Development Other valuation practices that focused more on litigation on & solvency Internal valuation for reporting purposes in Private Equity
• The valuation experience did not come up in my application or my interview, but I believe this is largely due top the fact that I spent 3-4 years in my Corp Dev job before applying for an MBA. I don't believe it impacted my application outside of the name of the employer.

I completely understand the feeling but you shouldn't feel that way at all.

I definitely felt that when applying too. I was fortunate/lucky in the sense that the company had historically not opened up their search beyond IB and PE, but recently expanded into valuation before I interviewed.

The best advice I can give you is to do your company specific research before the interview (listen to earnings calls, read a 10Q, 10K, recent deals etc.). After I got the job I was told that the main reason I stood out vs. competition was because I did my research on the company, on top of interviewing well. You will "want it more" than a lot of bankers who are pursuing PE and falling back on Corp Dev as a second option.

You will have the same technical skills as any junior banker from a valuation standpoint, potentially even better. You are not as aware of the M&A process, but that's something that you can Google for 15 min and get the rough understanding of.

To give you some additional hope, as I was transitioning out of Corp Dev we were in the process of interviewing for a new Analyst position. My colleagues at the time were ex IB, PE and Consulting. We interviewed a number of bankers and one valuation associate. The valuation associate interviewed head and shoulders above the rest of the group. He simply wanted it more. He did his research on the company and was predicting divestitures (correctly I might add, even though we could not tell him that in the interview) during the interview process. He knew our business and displayed that he really wanted the job.

You have the skills, just do your research, ask real questions, learn a little bit about the M&A process and you will be a strong candidate.

I am 100% serious in this offer. You can private message me and we can set up a time to talk in more detail if you would like. I have been in your shoes and understand the concerns.

These are great questions.

Question 1: How did your job responsibilities progress change as you were promoted throughout your 8 years with the company? Were there any ad-hoc projects outside of doing deals (i.e. at the request of management/BOD?)

The progression of obtaining new roles and responsibilities was more a function of gaining experience and building trust with portfolio.operating companies vs. obtaining a new title. There was a period of time when I was a manager where I was managing and leading deal teams just like I was as a director. There may have even been a period of time where I was doing the same as an analyst. I slowly moved from conducting business valuations, writing up IOIs/LOIs and helping portfolio companies put together PPT decks for internal approvals to managing and leading deal process.

Yes we did a lot of ad-hoc projects during my time in Corp Dev. We helped with some general strategy initiatives (competitive research, market research, white spaces, etc.) and also help source deals for potential targets. When I moved to a business segment, I also got involved with some operational related strategy work for a few companies who lacked resources at the companies.

Question 2: What was the most challenging aspect of Corp Dev (i.e. deal-wise, project mgmt, people)?

Hands down managing people on deal teams and dealing with internal processes. Not everyone staffed on a deal team is as interested/devoted to the DD process as they should be.

Question 3: Coming from a transaction services (i.e. Big 4 FDD) background, what would you suggest someone in that role strategically focus on in hopes of transitioning to CD (I find that it's normally uncommon, but potentially doable with the right skillset/preparation)

I definitely think that the transition is doable, but agree it is less common. My advice would be to: 1. Brush up on business valuation again and be prepared to explain examples of why you world or would not invest in certain industries /companies. It's a small sample size, but we would focus on that when applicants didn't come from banking 2. Do your research on the company (earnings calls, M&A,analyst reports) 3. Think about how your experience can help a corp dev team and highlight that. You are never going to stop a company from outsourcing FDD since you are just one person, but you this experience is valuable to any Corp Dev team. Your FDD reports always have deal and negotiation implications although you are typically unaware. Your FDD experiences give you a unique perspective of what new findings can change the course of a deal. This is just my opinion, but it will make for a strong interview if you can work in how your FDD will help catch red flags, true adjusted earnings etc.

These are great questions, I hope I don't disappoint with the response

1. This is for the all Type A people on the thread. I will say that my wife has to constantly remind me of this as it is easier said than done. We are all so anxious about the future that we don't enjoy the present.

2a. Here is a specific one for M&A. When conducting due diligence, always get friendly with the engineers. They will give you the most honest feedback about the company and products. The engineers always get neglected in the meetings and they have the most to say.

2b. General advice. You will come across people in your career and you will have no idea how they got to where they are in life.

Not a problem, I hope the answers have been helpful.

I avoided ibanking directly from undergrad simply because it was not pushed as a career path. I went to a non-target school (WSO defines as Non-Target, but still recognizable). I think we maybe had 1-2 banks recruit. My college was more focused on Big 4 and management consulting as career paths for finance majors.

I interviewed at 2-3 banks after 2 years in valuation after getting a better understanding of what I wanted to do as a next step in my career. I decided to stop pursuing banking because every company I spoke with was not going to recognize one minute of my valuation experience. I was going to start in the exact same spot as the undergraduate incoming class. At the time I felt the technical valuation experience should have held some weight in a transition to banking (this was only validated when I moved to Corp Dev. I still find it ridiculous that these middle market banks had this mentality). I was getting my ass kicked for 2 years in my current job and I was not prepared to gut out another 2 years of crazy long hours and being on call all the time. If some people want to grind it out for 4-5 years doing this, that is fine. I just missed too many happy hours, cancelled too many dates and was way too unhappy to deal with several more years of being an Excel jockey. Luckily after I made this decision I got a call a few months later for a Corp Dev job.

I think early exposure in Corp Dev has a few pros: 1. You get great access to leaders in the company. This is important for 2 reasons. First, you get to understand how decisions are made and how an organization really works. This is hard to quantify, but I think you will learn things that you will be able to use/apply for the rest of your career. This exposure can also potentially help you move within the organization (the most senior employees will vouch for you). Corp Dev typically creates opportunities within other groups. 2. Depending on how the Corp Dev group is structured, you are going to learn a lot. If you execute on a few transactions and get heavily involved you will learn more about legal, HR, Sales, finance, tax, than you ever would in FLDP.

With that said, if you know you like FP&A / Corporate Finance and are fairly confident you want to stick with that, then go that route. Just know that as you move deeper into FP&A, the harder it is to move to Corp Dev or something different. Corp Dev definitely gives you more optionality, but that may not matter.

On thing to consider as well with FP&A is to make sure you are comfortable with that Q to Q lifestyle. It's a personality / interest question for you to answer for yourself. I'm not wired that way. I could never do a quarter to quarter repetitive grind, but plenty of people can and do. I'd make a horrible CFO for that reason. It's likely not an issue now, but 32 quarters in, you may feel differently so it's important to at least think about now.

That's just my personal opinion based on experience of senior consultants (7-10 years consulting experience) moving into a M&A heavy Corp Dev role. I could be wrong, I just don't understand why corporations do it personally.

I have not heard of anyone moving from asset management to Corp Dev, but that doesn't even come close to meaning it isn't possible. At a high-level, I can definitely see the case/spin. You are thinking critically and strategically about what makes a good investment. That was a big part of my interview process. I think you are applying the same (or very similar) thought process into a slightly different situation. If I were you, I'd think about investment decisions you've supported and also not supported and highlight that on your resume (decisions and positive outcomes) and in the interview (things you've supported and not supported and why).

Does that help?

It's definitely possible. I knew of 2 experienced managers successfully move to Corp Dev in our group. I believe they went to Aon. I have not heard of Senior Managers+ successfully making the switch. After a certain period of time, I think you get pigeon holed.

It's going ok, I wish we were growing faster. Although we launched in 2019, I didn't quit my job until Nov, so we are still relatively new in terms of a full-time focus.

I'm sure there are a ton of things that we are getting wrong and that I can improve upon as with any start-up. What's difficult is determining how large of a variable COVID is vs. what is in our control. We are still gaining users since March, but we had a few large companies hit the pause button who were finalizing purchases after a trial. It's been slow.

Our largest struggle at the moment is figuring out marketing and how to gain traction with our end markets for qualified leads, without spending tons of money on ads. We need to get more junior staff interested in the product and push internally to drive sales based on convos with our end markets. It's also a fine balance to work on the product before getting more feedback on it. We need to take a lean approach and cannot build/enhance what we think people want..

If you want to PM me, I'd be happy to hear more about your idea. Quitting to pursue this has been the best decision I have made, regardless of whether I fail or succeed. I have learned more in the last few months than I had in a long time, professionally and about myself. It's honestly changed the way I look at the world and how I define what is going to make me happy with my career. It is interesting, intellectually stimulating, difficult, fun and scary as shit all at the same time. Some days I feel incredibly confident, others I feel like the dumbest person on the planet.

Based on where you are at in your career, I don't think anyone is going to fault you for giving something a try and failing. If anything people are going to view you in a higher regard.

Take a serious listen/watch to this short video. I find it very powerful. Find Your Passion:

Thanks for the support. Appreciate it. How was it moving from Corp Dev to banking? Did the bank easily get that the skill set translates, or did it require some explanation>